The top-ranked Orange used their defense to remain unbeaten, edging North Carolina State 56-55 on C.J. Fair's layup with 6.7 seconds left Saturday night.
Rakeem Christmas had 14 points and set career highs with 12 rebounds and seven blocks as Syracuse earned its 10th single-digit win despite shooting 35.2 percent.
Jerami Grant had 12 points and 14 rebounds, and Fair scored 11 points on 5-of-16 shooting.
T.J. Warren finished with 23 points, Kyle Washington had 14 and Ralston Turner 13 for the Wolfpack.